"Its my thought that,

in the beginning,

man seduced the dog into friendship

by his offer of free human-grade food.

And man has been trying to come up with a cheaper payment plan ever since."

~Esther Wilson, author

Confused about what to feed your dog?   Or do you just want to make a better educated decision?   Read On!   My other Dog Diets webpages go into greater detail. I've posted this page for you as a quick read. If you want/need more info, go here.   To simplify dog food choices, these are my three primary goals (in order of importance):   Does the food/diet work for the dog? Can your budget reasonably afford this diet choice? Can you reasonably acquire the food without too much hassle?   Below, I'll explain why each of this factors is vitally important.

 

WATER   VERY IMPORTANT Perhaps MORE IMPORTANT than diet is the freshness and quality of your dog's drinking water. Many people never give dogs' drinking water a second thought. But many diet issues can be helped or even cleared by providing fresh, high quality drinking water.   Also, a good diet can easily be compromised (harmed) by providing lesser quality water.   Like humans, the dog's body is primarily made up of water. (And Berners drink an incredible amount of water, higher than most other breeds).   Carefully consider the daily quality and freshness of your dog's water.

 

Does the food/diet work for the dog?

Never assume a dog diet is working for your dog just because you feel good about it. Face it, you've felt good about things you were completely wrong about before. It happens to all humans. So find very relevant, supporting evidence for 'why' you feel good about it. And then be prepared to be wrong occasionally.

No matter how educated our dog diet decision is, there's possibly a flaw to it that may surface. The fact is that, even if one dog food works well for a time, it may not always. This is where continued education will be as important as your ability to change your opinion for a better plan.

The Proof Is in The Poop:  Look at the Poop. Is it runny? well-formed? too smelly? slightly smelly? blood is in it? blood is not in it? what color is it? does it look greasy? how often does the dog poop?

Ideally, poop should be well-formed, happen after every meal (and sometimes between meals) and should not be very smelly (or not smell at all). And, ideally, it should be a normal looking color (based on what you've fed) and consistency. It should appear slightly moist but not greasy. (Can you imagine how I got educated on this topic of dog poop? yeah, my gravestone should partially read: "she scooped enough poop to know").

If your dog's poop doesn't meet those guidelines, maybe you should try another diet plan. Perhaps the least serious offender (well, maybe not to your nose) is the smell issue. Smell often denotes how well digested the food was (and whether there are parasites present, etc). The biggest offenders are blood in the poop and just as important, loose poop (runny, pancake-like, nearly water, shooting-through-a-screen-at-twenty-paces, etc). These are clear signs there's a health problem, very likely a diet problem.

If there's a significant temperature (fever), I'll seek my Vet's counsel (understanding my Vet is likely far less knowledgeable about dog diets than I'd like to believe but is likely trained well enough to know if there's something else wrong with my dog besides diet).

So here are SOME of the poop abnormalities that tell me I need to spend some money on a Vet visit with my dog fairly promptly:

-bloody poop

-sustained fever / temperature more than two degrees above or below normal for several hours

-poop with obvious parasites

-constipation (aka, no poop)

-excessively greasy poop

-constantly loose poop that never clears up for many days (more than, say, 5 or 6 days with no good explanation to be had from diet choices)

-excessive gas that runs the family out of the house and can't be cured through diet change

Note To Self: Using a ziploc bag, take some of the dog's poop to the Vet with you just in case it could be a good idea to have it tested.

Another Note To Self: Do NOT feed Kaopectate to my dog because it could kill my dog (especially if its a herding breed).

If the poop is happy, its likely the dog's diet is happy because...The Proof Is In The Poop.

Will the dog eat it? Okay, so it doesn't matter how great the ingredients look or how expensive/cheap/organic/raw/healthy the food is if the dog won't eat it. Use common sense here and get something the dog WILL eat.

I like to think Karma will take care of those who continually feed their dogs food the dog doesn't really like.

How is the dog's Energy, Fur, Teeth, Breath and overall vitality? Making the exception of ADD dogs (and you know the breeds I refer to!) the dog's diet should make the dog's fur healthy and help the dog have good vitality of life. Naturally, all of these items are breed specific. Vitality means something completely different to a Papillon or Labrador versus to a Blood Hound or Mastiff. And the teeth in a Toy Breed will be a completely different issue than the teeth in a Giant Breed, but nevertheless, diet does impact the dog's teeth - and breath - no matter what the breed.

Ideally, you want the dog to have the level of energy and the texture/appearance/quantity of the fur as being appropriate for the breed(s). And you want the dog's teeth and breath to be the best possible, given the breed(s) of the dog.

If not, look first to the dog's diet!!

Can your budget reasonably afford this dog food choice?

Take a good look at your ability to continue to pay for whatever dog food diet you're considering, remembering that better diet often means fewer Vet bills.

Many people buy an expensive dog food and then (next shopping excursion) switch to a cheap dog food because they didn't plan their budget well enough. The mentality often goes: well, I feed something quality for a little while, that should help. OR...well, surely the store wouldn't sell this food if it were horrible for my dog. (wrong on both counts)

If the dog food you want to feed is just slightly higher than your budget allows, ask the dog food supplier if they will negotiate price with you. Most privately owned pet shops that I know will do this. For instance, the pet shop owner may discount your dog food if you buy in bulk or if you agree to buy solely from them on a regular basis. Even if the pet shop owner declines at first, don't give up. Maybe they just want to see that you're earnest about your request. Most pet shop owners, at first anyway, want to help people with pets. And, eventually, I bet the pet shop owner will reward you for continuing to ask (which also shows you shop at their store often). Persistence is often the difference in success toward a goal. Afterward, I hope you'll employ the integrity to do what you said you would do.

Don't start on a diet plan that you cannot afford to maintenance. Contrary to popular belief among many human social classes, Dogs are NOT human. They need a simple, fairly consistent diet. It seriously negative impacts the dog's health to be continually changed over to new diet options. This means dogs cannot easily convert from steak, potatoes and veggies one day to cheap cereal the next day.

Decide and stick to a diet plan you can afford to feed long term. And if you can't afford a reasonably good diet plan that obviously works for your dog, love your dog enough to give your dog to a responsible person who can and will (this does not include shelter rescue).

Can you reasonably acquire the food without too much hassle?

Face it, you like an easier lifestyle. And this doesn't  include habitually traveling from the US to New Zealand to buy the dog food you really want to feed.

Check out the resources for the dog food you want to feed BEFORE you begin to feed it.

Is the dog food hard to acquire because its not sold locally? Here are some ideas I've seen that work well:

Ask your local dog food supplier if they can stock the dog food you want (and remember that persistence usually pays off)

Network with others in the same dilemma. Dog clubs are a great resource for this. Ask other dog owners if they'd like to go in with you on group purchases from a distant source (helps cut the price of shipping and shifts the responsibility of doing the order around occasionally!)

Buy in Bulk - plan a shopping trip once a month (and make the storage at home to make this work)

Conversely, don't feed a cheap/easy food just because they stock it at the grocery store or Walmart. In fact, there aren't many - if any - foods normally stocked at Walmart or at grocery stores that I will feed to my dogs. Love your dog enough to go an extra mile on a regular basis - if it means better nutrition for your dog. Just be sure you're willing to do this regularly.

So now, ask yourself these questions:

	Does the food/diet work for the dog?
	Can your budget reasonably afford this diet choice?
	Can you reasonably acquire the food without too much hassle?

That's the most simple I can make it for you.

If you really want to be disturbed and distressed over choices, just read the ingredients label on dog foods you're considering. That's enough information and misinformation to short circuit any normal human brain.

Other items to bear in mind when choosing the diet plan for your dog:

Expensive does NOT mean better!

Cheaper does NOT mean better!

More wonderful ingredients does NOT mean better! (aka, Innova or Chicken Soup for the Dog Lovers Soul is not necessarily better because of the horde of yummy looking ingredients)

"Organic", well, that usually does mean better (if its really organic)

"Natural" does NOT mean better! (poop is natural and, despite my dog's yen for cow pies, I won't feed that!)

"Raw" does NOT mean better! (no matter what the raw nazis tell you)

"Commercial" (aka, dry dog food, canned dog food) does NOT mean better! (no matter what the kibble nazis tell you)

Glucosamine/Chondroitin added on the label does NOT mean it is in sufficient portion to do any good! (can you say 'Marketing Tool' ?)

Hand prepared by you does NOT mean better! (that is, unless you have a college degree in canine nutrition) (wanna hand prepare your own meals for your dog? just ask me about the whacko lady I know who fed tons of calcium supplement to her dog because she thought needed to supplement the diet she was hand-preparing for her Berner - and I'll tell you about a 6 month old puppy who looked and moved like a 10 year old arthritic dog)

Now, there IS a balance to the information I've listed just above. For instance, quality kibbles are usually more expensive. Raw foods are often higher nutrition quality. Hand pre-pared food is what dogs used to live on before commercially produced dog foods - and they survived before on it.

Bottom line: Use Common Sense and Look Beyond the fabulous marketing schemes to the factual application of what you'll be feeding your dog's body - every day. And remember the dog food mantra: KISS (keep it simply simple).

Closing Thoughts:

Just educate yourself and make the best decision you can.

Be prepared to adjust your choice based on how the dog diet performs for your pet.

If you need help, seek out your dog's breeder OR a local breeder (in the same breed if possible) who is very involved with dog clubs and showing their dogs. That's because this is a breeder who is likely very concerned about what they feed their dogs and so they'll have some good information for you - especially about local resources.

If you can't locate either your dog's breeder or another local breeder involved w/clubs and showing, then contact the national club for the breed you identify in your dog.

If those contacts don't work, you can try chatting w/your Vet. But if your Vet sells or advocates Science Diet - for healthy dogs - you can rest assured they know little about dog food choices. However, I'm occasionally surprised to learn that there are Vets who actually know about and employ good nutrition. So it could happen that you meet one.

If none of those work, contact me. I'm NOT a certified nutritionist. I'm just an experienced dog person who has learned a lot about dog diets. Maybe I can help you find other good resources for your dog.

~ Please Shop Dog Food Choices Wisely ~

Below are kibbles I will NEVER, EVER FEED any dog of mine:

	Science Diet (although I applaud and have fed Prescription Diet for sick dogs with diagnosed issues)
	Purina Beneful
	Kibbles & Bits
	Cornucopia
	Waltham Lamb

Best Wishes on your food choices.

You're welcome to email me with any questions:

Info@sagekeep.com

Note: The above represents only my experience and my resulting opinions. 

Another Note: All emails with derogatory comments about my food choices will be happily deleted and forgotten.

SEE ALSO..... "What's Really in Pet Food" by the Animal Protection Institute® "Miracle Cure for Hip Dysplasia in Dogs"  www.NaturalRearing.com www.Whole Dog Journal.com